Blog Category Archives — Page 2 of 3 — Georgia Criminal Defense Lawyers Blog Published By Georgia Criminal Defense Attorneys

What is a PSR Interview?

Published on: September 18, 2023 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

The PSR interview consists of meeting with the assigned probation officer for about two hours, and you have the right to have your attorney present during the interview. The probation officer will ask you about, among other things: your childhood, any abuse you have gone through, family members and their support of you, places you have lived, marriages, divorces, children, medical history, mental health, education, military service, any drug problems, your past arrests and convictions, any terms of probation or parole, and, about how you got involved in the offense.

Your probation officer will also ask you about how you’ve accepted responsibility for breaking the law. It is important to be aware that, in the federal system, defendants who do not clearly accept responsibility for their actions can receive harsher sentences than those who admit they broke the law, follow the rules of the Court, and continue to follow the law.

Your probation officer will also ask you about the assets you and your spouse own, any cash you have, and any debts you owe. This is because in some cases the Court is required to determine if you have the ability to pay a fine or, in some cases, restitution to victims. Restitution can be mandatory, and the financial information you provide will be used to determine monthly payments. Because of this, and because your officer will investigate and confirm the information you provide, it is very important you give truthful information about your financial situation. You may also be asked to provide documents such as, but not limited to, statements, deeds, and titles, which support the information you provide verbally, and on a variety of financial forms. Finally, you will be asked to sign a variety of release forms that will allow your officer to access government records, as well as educational, medical, psychiatric, and employment information about you.

What is a Presentence Investigation Report (“PSR”)?

Published on: September 18, 2023 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

A Presentence Investigation Report, often abbreviated as “PSR” or “PSI”, is a document created by the United States Probation Office after an individual has been convicted of a felony in federal court. The PSR documents the convicted individual’s life history and background and is provided to the Court to assist in determining a fair sentence.

After a defendant pleads guilty (or is found guilty by a jury or judge), the judge will order the probation officer to create the PSR. The assigned probation officer will conduct a PSR interview with the defendant as well as an independent investigation into the offense to gather information.

Once the initial PSR is complete, the report is sent to your attorney, the Government’s attorney, and the Court. Once disclosed, your attorney is required to review the report with you. If you see any information that is incorrect, or if you disagree with how the guidelines are computed, your attorney can file objections to the PSR. The final PSR will make any corrections and note any objections in the PSR Addendum. If there are still any unresolved objections by the day you are sentenced, the Judge will resolve any disagreements before pronouncing your final sentence.

School Threats Resulting in Criminal Charges

Published on: September 28, 2022 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

Schools across the state of Georgia are facing an increase in threats of violence. It has led schools to step up security. Each and every threat must be taken seriously. Some of these threats turn out to be real, so officials have beefed up security everywhere, including for example, Fulton County Schools implementing license plate readers on all of its campuses.

But,what if a threat is simply a result of a prank? What charges could result from calling in a threat that is not real? Criminal defense attorney Meg Strickler recently commented on NBC 11 Alive News about this very issue. Calling in a threat to a school can be very disruptive and it will always involve law enforcement. Teens can thus face charges ranging from misdemeanor to federal charges. And, the school can also suspend or expel a student for this conduct.

It is a complex situation especially in these times.

What are the current DOJ priorities?

Published on: April 1, 2022 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

Attorney General Merrick Garland made recent comments about what he considered to be the Department of Justice’s top priorities for 2022. Since taking office in March 2021, Garland has tried to combat crime in a tumultuous time. He has been criticized for his handling of January 6 investigation and has stated it’s the most urgent probe in history.

With all of this going on, the US Attorney’s office increased its prosecutions of individuals of white collar crimes in the year 2021. White collar charges like fraud, theft, corruption, bribery, environmental crime, tax fraud, health care fraud, procurement fraud, money laundering, PPP loan fraud, etc will continue to get more attention from the Department of Justice.

What does this mean? It means that investigations of any sort need to be taken seriously and that you should contact a lawyer immediately if any wrongdoing is alleged.

Covid-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force established

Published on: May 26, 2021 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

The Department of Justice just announced that U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland created COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to enhance enforcement efforts against COVID-19 related fraud.

Cases have included:

Offers to purchase COVID-19 vaccination cards

What to know if you are accused of Medicare fraud

Published on: May 1, 2018 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

The Department of Justice states that health care fraud costs the country tens of billions of dollars every year. With so much money at stake, it is no surprise Medicare fraud cases are drawing increased attention from the government. Medicare fraud is a federal crime, and the government has a large budget to pursue individuals accused of fraud.

With your work as a medical professional, you have treated many patients over the course of your career. Occasionally, clerical errors happen. Unfortunately, these types of errors could provide cause for the government to open a Medicare fraud investigation against you.

Not only would an investigation damage your reputation, it could affect your ability to serve patients. If convicted of Medicare fraud, you cannot accept patients that use Medicare. As a responsible medical professional, you need to understand how to protect yourself from such charges.

The consequences of cooking the books and deceit

Published on: March 28, 2018 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

Cooking the books is an idiom referring to a variety of fraudulent activities used by companies to falsify financial information. Generally, the practice involves augmenting earnings or removing debt to improve financial standings.

The consequences for corporate misconduct and fraudulent misrepresentation are steep. Penalties range from federal charges and jail time to high dollar monetary sanctions and debarment.

Crimes of deceit

The White Collar Paradox

Published on: March 21, 2018 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

White collar crime has become a paradox in the interconnected world we live in today. On the one hand, the ways and means to inadvertently slide into many white collar scenarios have increased exponentially. On the other, penalties for those charged with a white-collar crime have been on the increase.

Extremely Easy

These days, it can be effortless to fall into committing a white-collar crime because of unprecedented access to things like trade secrets and financial accounts. Add to that the extra dimension of opportunity that the internet offers. You no longer need to be in the same city or even country to access information and assets.

Prescription opioid abuse can lead to criminal charges

Published on: February 9, 2018 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

The United States is currently suffering a national crisis regarding opioid abuse. According to the Center for Disease Control, more than 100 Americans die every day from opioid overdose or complications related to opioids. The situation came to a head last year, when the Trump administration declared the opioid crisis a national public health emergency.

Many people believe that they and their family members would never become addicted to opioids, but this could not be farther from the truth. Many instances of opioid addiction stem from the misuse of prescription medication. And misusing prescription opioids can lead not only to a serious addiction, but also to criminal charges– the consequences of which can be severe.

The origins of the opioid crisis

Hackers may have trouble cashing out from Bitcoin scams

Published on: January 29, 2018 | By Conaway & Strickler, P.C.

Bitcoin is fast becoming a player in the online marketplace. People are starting to make investments in the electronic currency in the hope of cashing in on its wealth-building opportunities. Criminals seeking to scam others out of hard earned cash are also in the mix because Bitcoin’s blockchain technology lends itself to anonymous transactions.

WannaCrypt hacker’s malware ransom scheme

In May, 2017 hackers stole private data in a large malware attack affecting more than 300,000 computers and taking down systems all over the world. In order to receive a code to “decrypt” their scrambled data, users were asked to send ransom money through Bitcoin.